Last updated on January 2nd, 2019 at 10:34 am
Portland, Oregon-based neighborhood grocer New Seasons Market will increase starting pay to $15 per hour for staff across Oregon, Washington and California in 2019, building on the company’s long history of supporting staff with industry-leading pay and benefits in the communities it serves. New Seasons’ sister company, New Leaf Community Markets, will additionally increase starting pay to $15 per hour for staff in Northern California.
“New Seasons Market and New Leaf Community Markets are committed to supporting staff with competitive pay and benefits as part of our founding values,” said Kristi McFarland, co-president of New Seasons Market. “We want to attract and retain the best people, and have been listening and responding to staff suggestions to assist their growth with the company and help our communities thrive.”
Effective Feb. 1, 2019, the starting pay for all staff in Portland, Southwest Washington and Northern California will be $15 an hour, as part of a multi-year strategy that has resulted in a 50 percent increase in starting pay for the regions since 2015. Alongside a higher starting pay, New Seasons and New Leaf will make additional updates to the companies’ pay programs, including increased wage scales, more frequent pay increases, adjustments based on time with the company and a simplified review process for more predictable pay progression. With all of these changes, more than 80 percent of New Seasons’ and New Leaf’s clerks will see an increase in pay in February.
“These updates have been our goal since our most recent major investment in starting pay in 2016 and we are happy to be able to make it happen even earlier than planned,” said Forrest Hoffmaster, co-president of New Seasons Market. “The grocery industry, as one of the largest employers of hourly workers, has an opportunity to improve equity and livability for the people working in stores, and we’re proud to be a leader in this area.”
The investments further New Seasons’ and New Leaf’s commitment to progressive policies and programs nurturing staff and the communities served by the grocers’ combined 25 stores. As the world’s first B Corp grocery stores, New Seasons and New Leaf lead the industry with robust healthcare for all kinds of families, paid parental leave, secure lifestyle scheduling, paid volunteer opportunities, career development and more. New Seasons has also championed successful campaigns to raise the Oregon state minimum wage in 2016 and increase affordable housing in 2018, endorsed legislation to require fair and predictable scheduling for all workers, and has advocated for statewide paid family and medical leave, marriage equality and GMO labeling requirements.
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